LAS VEGAS — It felt like the final act of revenge as the Liberty ended the Aces’ hopes for a three-peat with a 76-62 win in Game 4 of the WNBA semifinals on Sunday.
After scoring the first points of the game, the Aces would never take the lead again despite cutting the deficit to one multiple times.
Once again, the Aces had no answer for Sabrina Ionescu who led the Liberty with 22 points on 5-of-8 from deep. She bounced back from the worst performance in her four-year playoff career in Game 3, when she posted just four points on 1-of-7 shooting.
Kalin Sipes - The Sporting Tribune
Las Vegas Aces guard Tiffany Hayes (15) attempts a two point goal while Liberty’s Breanna Stewart (30) tries to block the shot during WNBA basketball game against New York Liberty on Sunday October 6, 2024 in Las Vegas.
Breanna Stewart spearheaded the Liberty’s dominant frontcourt, scoring 19 points and grabbing 14 rebounds. Jonquel Jones added 14 points and some huge, timely buckets despite fighting foul trouble throughout.
Stewart’s MVP successor A’ja Wilson headed the Aces with 19 points and 10 rebounds, but couldn’t will her team to extend the series to Game 5. Kelsey Plum chipped in 17 points but, like the rest of the squad, struggled to hit shots throughout. The Aces shot just 23% from three, including a few makes late in the fourth after the game was effectively already decided.
The two top vote-getters in Sixth Person of the Year also showed out, displaying why they’ve been the most valuable bench players in the league.
This year’s winner, Tiffany Hayes finished with 11 points, three assists and two rebounds but the numbers don’t tell the story of her impact. Hayes’ energy on both ends kept the Aces afloat and allowed them to weather violent storms as the Liberty mounted runs.
Liberty rookie Leonie Fiebich came in second in voting, but shifted into a starting role for the series with the Aces. With Courtney Vandersloot sliding to the bench, Fiebich added length and shooting to the starting unit while Vandersloot was able to become the engine of the bench offense. Fiebich finished with 11 points as well, and was a team-high +28 +/- in 28 minutes.
The Aces only trailed by two entering the final quarter, but found themselves on the wrong side of a 17-3 run and ended up losing the fourth, 23-11.
Shooting wasn’t the only struggle for the Aces on Sunday, as they got crushed in the paint and on the glass. The Liberty won the rebounding battle 48-27, and the offensive rebounding battle 13-4.
The Liberty move on to the WNBA Finals where they will take on the winner of the Sun-Lynx series, in search of their first title in six trips. Their fifth title appearance was a four-game loss to the Aces last year, which served as a chip on their shoulder and inspiration for revenge. Since then, they’ve beat the Aces in 6-of-7 games including the regular season.
“New York has had really great will and determination this whole year,” coach Becky Hammon said. “We talked a lot of smack last year, I’m sure they heard it and they got to smack us this year.”
Kalin Sipes - The Sporting Tribune
Las Vegas Aces guard Jackie Young (0) attempts a two point goal during WNBA basketball game against New York Liberty on Sunday October 6, 2024 in Las Vegas.
The Liberty will host games one and two of the WNBA Finals, as they finished with the league’s best record. They’ll almost certainly enter as the betting favorite and will look to cap off an impressive year by hoisting a trophy.
After the greatest season in league history, Wilson comes up short of the ultimate accolade, the Finals. Hammon got emotional speaking about how she hurts for A’ja, missing out on completing the season as champs.
“What hurts now too is just with A’ja, having the season that she did,” said Hammon, holding back tears.
That pain isn’t solely based on completing Wilson’s record year, as the women in the Vegas locker room have developed a strong bond and yet fall short of their goal.
“We also hurt for each other,” Chelsea Gray said. “Just all the work that we put in, the highs and lows of the season, injuries, not playing, in and out.
“We wanted to come together with a trophy at the end. So I think the hurt is there because we wanted the trophy. And that’s the sign of a competitive locker room, that’s the sign of trying to strive for greatness every time you step on the floor.”
The loss kicks off what will be a “long” offseason according to Hammon, and one that is sure to see personnel change.
“We have to really take a sharp look at ourselves in the mirror, see our shortcomings, and then make the moves necessary,” Hammon said. “It’s not going to be the same group, probably next year, it just won’t.”